Getting Back Into the Fray After Over 25 Years
I been away from bass fishing for over 25 years and getting back into it. Long story for another day why I walked away from it, but happy to be back. Now, I might be wrong in this, but I am taking the approach to this that I am starting from the bottom all over again. so far the one talk that I really took to heart so far is the Adversity is Dope by Brian Latimer. for anyone, especially anyone just starting, it is well worth a good listen because everything he talks about not only can be applied to bass fishing, but to life it's self.
But I have to credit Ike, Pete, Dave, and the rest of the Ike crew for rekindling my love for the sport.
That's great to hear. Yes, Latimer's class is excellent https://bassu.tv/bass-fishing-video/adversity-is-dope-brian-latimer I believe you will also like Gerald Swindle's entire library of similar content (applies to fishing, but also to life).
Original positive mental attitude seminar with Gerald Swindle - https://bassu.tv/bass-fishing-video/original-positive-mental-attitude-class-gerald-swindle
More positive mental attitude with G-Man - https://bassu.tv/bass-fishing-video/original-positive-mental-attitude-gerald-swindle-remastered
Swindle PMA Part 3 - https://bassu.tv/bass-fishing-video/positive-mental-attitude-2017-aoy-edition-gerald-swindle
For the love of the fishing game with Swindle - https://bassu.tv/bass-fishing-video/for-the-love-of-the-fishing-game-gerald-swindle
I love Gmans stuff. I watched them all multiple times. You are 100% correct in that, I am I have applied a tom of his PMA talks into my every day live with work, fishing and everything else.
I have watched Gerald's positive mental attitude videos with people who otherwise were not highly interested in bass fishing. I don't recall the exact video, but in one he talks about the pursuit of PMA making you a better all-around person. Admittedly, I struggle with staying positive, but I try to remember that 1 negative thought will put you in the whole so far, you spend the rest of the day catching up. I like Gerald's example that some anglers, like KVD, are doing PMA things, even if they don't know it. Whenever I have a big problem at work or something, I try to say, "That doesn't happen often, once I get it fixed, it probably won't happen again for a long time". In the heat of the moment, it's hard to have a positive mental attitude. When trailer tire blows out just out of cell range, when kids throw food instead of eating it, when insurance says, "we don't cover that medicine", etc.
For me, as a Christian, it's about keeping the perspective of what Christ has done for me, that I should forgive others, and remember that I'm eternally blessed. We're all human though, so there are certainly days (unfortunately, sometimes weeks) when it's a constant struggle to keep head above water. I'm glad you enjoyed G-man's PMA stuff. It's really worth the price of a subscription just to watch Gerald's PMA classes...even if you've never fished and never intend to.
You got that right. I will re-watch the PMA seminars when needed, sometimes for a refresher, sometimes for a laugh. For work, I'm a delivery driver on a dedicated route where i go to the same places every day. To go with that, I'm heading into the same issues with that in certain parts every day. Gotta love a 5 year long construction project LOL. So for that it's not so much that it won't happen again for a while, it' helps me to let it roll off my back easier. I guess in short, things like that are only as bad as your mind makes them out to be. That's where I struggle the most with it, dealing with construction, other drivers and other things out of my control.
Now out on the water, it's a totally different deal for me. I'm away from all of that so what ever happens is all good whether I catch them or not. I'll be totally honest here, I only caught 4 fish this year, and one of them was a catfish. Not feeling bad about that at all because that was 4 more fish then I had over the last 25 years when I walked away from it (very long story). So with all that being said, next year I will be hopefully heading into my first season of local kayak tournaments.
No shame in not loading the boat. I've been bass fishing for 40 years, for about 5 of those years, I fished 100+ days a year. I still get skunked, but, like you said, it's about being out there and away from work. I did cut back on fishing, 15 years ago, trying to fish Bassmaster Open-level tournaments was too much like a job, and I wasn't enjoying it anymore (coupled with my real job and that I don't like being on the road a lot). I know some people who love that lifestyle, but as I've gotten older, I like to separate my work and my hobbies. People say, "When you do what you love, you never work a day in your life". It's true, but, if you get burned out, you can lose the love and it just becomes a job.
That being said, my mother-in-law asks me to catch her crappie all the time. I admit, they are a delicious fish. I can't tell you how many hours I spent chasing those things and maybe catching a dozen in a whole year. One year, my wife and I were out like every other weekend until 3AM with lights rigged up, minnows in the livewell, tied up to bridge pilings...maybe 2 crappie per trip (and maybe a couple of short ones we had to throw back). We stayed positive, and those will be great memories, even if we didn't catch fish.
I went through the same thing with my photography. I had a business doing that for about 8 years. I would do tractor pulls, barrel races, some drag races and car and tractor shows. Well, the hours started to get to me for one, I was working 60 hours a week at the day job and putting almost that much time in on the side with the photography side hustle. Then add in the fact that most wanted something for nothing and well, you can't run a business like that. So I stopped that when the burnout set in big time. I'm slowly getting back into that, but on my own terms, not going to try to make a business out of it anymore.
back to the fishing side of things, I been on 4 different bodies of water this year, mostly fun fishing and dialing in techniques. Only one of those day did I actually take it some what serious, which is the day I caught the 3 other bass. That was a tournament simulation, not even a practice. On the water at 6:45 AM and done at 2:45 PM. I did that just to see if I could hack it. I learned a ton that day. Best part of that was, I don't have any electronics for the kayak, yet. That coming over the winter LOL. But I did use sight and sound to dial in where they were and started catching them. They were about 150 yards off shore on a grass flat busting bait fish on the surface in the troughs of the grass. This is that point and time I proved to my self, I can catch them. so I'm calling that a very productive day.
Thank you Jason, this helps immensely.
